to be or not to be

Hi all, newbie here. I was contacted by my cousin the other night as he caught wind that I was looking for some other career sources and he mentioned that home inspections would be a great thing to look into.
Some general questions though…
What kind (if any) insurances would I need to get started?
Is having family and friends/aquaintances in real estate a good thing to have?
Typically, what should your background be prior to inspections?
and of course, what can be expected for “income” from a venture like this?

I have a background in general construction and have been in the remodling business in the past. Currently I work as a building engineer in all aspects of maintenance for several commercial banking buildings.

any help/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Brady, welcome.

Check your states licensing laws. Get some HI specific training. Check your local area for HI saturation. I was told once that the average HI claims 26,000 a year as income. Plan for a lean 18 months at least. Many HI’s carry E&O insurance, I do.

BK

Thanks Brian,
MN doesnt have any licensing laws. If I plan on going this route, even for supplemental income, I planned on taking course offered here in the cities through a place called “prosource”.
As far as errors and ommisions ins. what does that cost roughly? or does it depend on the area?

Between $2000 to $5000 a year depends. Some guys carry a bond, some are self insured. Read through other areas of the board as there is lot’s of info.

BK

there is a ton of info here thats for sure! I have read a bunch of threads following the “start up” of getting started, and I an hearing the same thing…tough business, tough to get things going, tough the first years, W/O schooling your done, need 40+ years of experience to really make it…

is it REALLY that difficult? I mean, I consider myself pretty knowledgeable in the construction industry…I am a gen contractors kid and have been “swinging a hammer” for about 20+ years, I currently work in the commercial trades, AND (not that it means ANYTHING) I passed the “free” online test here with 80%…

I am really interested, even if its a “part time” gig for awhile.

Brady, it is what you make it. If you persevere, and are consistent and do not get sued right out of the chute, you will make it. That 40 years of experience is crock if you ask me. :slight_smile: It can be quite a rewarding profession.

I am a little surprised you have not gotten any more replies.:frowning:

Brady,

Hit the archives. The reason you haven’t gotten more responses is because this one has been addressed many times in the past. Lots of information in there.

Adam, A Plus

I Agree with Adam…do a search for “newbie,” and you will find literally hundreds of posts answering probably every question you have, and some you haven’t even thought of.
NACHI is a very “newbie friendly” group. You will learn a lot here. There are some talented inspectors that contribute.

Ed Porter

I have, and I have found a lot of info, and alot of it is repetitive…some people didnt even get a response.

In anycase, I am looking at a couple different options for education…

  1. prosource “seminars” 3-4 day classes
  2. online study, which I already think is a bunch of hoo-ie, seeing as how I cant see me taking the time to “study” for something on-line when I have “other” things I could be doing

I looked in th phone book/online and found that there are only 3 HI’s in our area (of course there are big namers that will “serve” the area) and when I went adn did an mls search, I found that there are well over 3000 homes for sale currently around here too…
is that a good sign?

hitting the archives again - Brady

Brady post your questions in the Members only discussion area. You may get more useful replies;)

Brady, check out ahit.com

Dont I have to be a certified MEMBER to post there? thats the whole reason that I am posting here…I am not a certified NACHI member. I am trying to get all the reasons why I should pursue this. I realize that its going to be tough at first, but if I keep it “part time” I can still work in this (quite literal) dead end career and make ends meet (sort of) I have the support and financial “assistance” ready to go, I just need to pull the trigger and get started on some classes…BUT, where to go from there I dont know…
I dont know anyone to do ride alongs, nor do I feel right about asking someone I dont know…
I think that I could be really good at this given my background, but I want to make da** sure I know what I am getting my family into before making that leap…

My bad Brady, I guess you better join then.:slight_smile: :wink:

LOL, guess I may have to huh…

OK, beating a dead horse and I may post this twice, here and in Education, but has anyone heard of:
Prosource? heres the link.
http://www.prosource.com/Industry_Index.asp?Folder=Home_Inspection&ObjectiveID=43&ObjectiveCode=CE

ANY comments would be cool

They connived me into joining…and the info in the members area is waaaay better…and so are the arguments!

As for online learning being hooie…it is what you make of it as is everything in this life.

The best online learning only costs .79 per day…and its here on these boards.

Tony, I agree with you whole heartedly…the best type of learning is experience and being able to share that experience with others. At least thats the way I have always learnded the bestest.

I will join, NACHI - soon as I get the $$…

Guys, I really think I can do this, so if I seem apprehensive its only to try to get as much info out of you as I can prior to starting classes…

I thought I replyed to this a couple hours ago I guess it didn’t go through. Prosource and ITA hooked up together last year from what I hear it’s a good course. For insurance the state has insurance for home inspectors it’s especially a good deal for someone just starting out for home inspections only (no commerical) it comes out to about $15.00 per inspection. This is for Minnesota Inspectors only. It is the Minnesota Joint Underwriters Asscosiation. St. Paul, Minneapolis, Bloomington, So St Paul, Hopkins, and Maplewood all require Truth in Sale of Housing inspections. To do these you have to pass their tests and be licensed in each city if you want do these inspections

Brady,

I am in the same boat you are in, I have been researching the HI industry for about 4 months. In reguards to your prosource question, I have not heard of them, but I have found several good schools that offer both online and in class education. Ar requires licensing, and I have also been looking at some of the other states that require licensing, I would think about using a school that is accepted by licensing states, just because it seems like they should offer the better educations since there are 100’s of places offering HI training. A few I have found are ITA and ASHI.

Brady, post some of your questions in the General section, they get more readers